The Certainty of Fate
by Ilduskela
Summary: A (to-be) series of interconnected one-shots detailing the progression of Felix and Sheba's relationship, starting with Sheba's kidnapping in the Suhalla Desert.
1. A Promise

As the Tornado Lizard ripped another soldier's throat with its razor-sharp claws, Sheba began to wish she had never left Tolbi.

It had all happened so quickly. One moment they were walking along, thirsty and overheated but still relatively safe; the next, a violent sandstorm brewed, and the lizard had come barrelling at them out of nowhere. The soldiers escorting Sheba were by no means amateurs, but they were still no match for the beast.

"Run, Sheba!" a soldier named Tom shouted, nimbly dodging a swipe from the lizard. His comrade, however, wasn't so lucky—the lizard's claws penetrated his armour and sliced his stomach open. Another soldier tried to sneak up on the beast, but a particularly strong gust of wind threw him into a nearby boulder. Sheba heard a crack; the boulder was still intact.

She tried to run, but only ended up falling over backwards. Shielding her eyes from the sand whipping around her, completely paralysed in fear, she watched the Tornado Lizard's rampage in horror. She couldn't look away for even one second. If she turned away, or tried to run, she couldn't know who was alive and who was not. Nor could she know whether the beast was pursuing her. Maybe if she stayed here, stayed still, it wouldn't notice her. Maybe it would spare her. Maybe ...

After crushing the last soldier's body with its jaws, the Tornado Lizard turned its murderous gaze to Sheba. If it had been able to, it would have grinned.

Sheba shook uncontrollably. She was going to die, she was really going to die. The lizard dropped the soldier's body and slowly made its way toward her, sure of its prize. She would never see Faran, or anyone else, ever again. They wouldn't even know when or how she died.

From this close, she could see the soldier's blood on the lizard's claws and bared teeth.

She closed her eyes. This was the end. Maybe, if she was lucky, it would kill her quickly.

The Tornado Lizard's shrieks pierced the air. Alarmed, Sheba opened her eyes, and saw that the lizard was somehow on fire. As the lizard died, completely engulfed in the flames, the winds ceased to blow and the sandstorm subsided. Without the blowing sand obstructing her vision, she saw a group of people nearby, fronted by a man and woman who both had red eyes and pale, scaley skin. The man's silvery blue hair was kept off his face with a navy headband, while the woman's blonde hair spilled past her shoulders, almost wild in appearance.

Sheba had never seen anyone like them before. _Are they even human?_ Just being under their gaze made her skin crawl.

The blonde woman spoke first: "This is who they were guarding? This girl?"

"It would seem so." The man's smile didn't quite reach his eyes.

It was when the man took a step toward her that Sheba realized these two people frightened her far more than any Tornado Lizard ever would.

"Get away from me!" She was on her feet. Using her special powers, she summoned a whirlwind of her own, hurling it at the strange man. It did little more than ruffle his clothing and get sand in his eyes.

"You ... whelp!" he roared, madly scrubbing at his eyes. "I'll-!"

"Saturos!" the woman said sharply. "This girl ... she may be the one we've been looking for."

Another man from the group, also strange in appearance with his light blue hair and turquoise eyes, nodded. "Yes. The Jupiter Adept." He gave her a considering look.

"I ..." She had no idea what they were talking about. Jupiter Adept? The other people in the group were also eyeing her consideringly; there were two men, one young with dark-brown hair and the other elderly with grey, and an auburn-haired girl who looked no more than a year or two older than herself.

"Girl." Saturos, as the woman had called him, stood right in front of her. She peered up helplessly at him. "I assume you are the one from Lalivero with the ... special powers."

Sheba nodded.

"Then today is your lucky day—today, we are saving you from this abominable place. All we ask in return is that you accompany us to the Venus Lighthouse."

"... Th-thank y-"

"Pull what you did again, though, then I can't promise you'll make it out in one piece." His smirk was the only warning she received before he backhanded her, sending her sprawling to the ground. He turned away. "Felix, help her up. We can't afford to linger here any longer."

The young man glared at Saturos. "You said you wouldn't involve anyone else who wasn't directly related to this. You promised."

"Oh, Felix," the man with the blue hair said, smiling serenely. "Would you leave this poor girl here to die in this wretched place?"

Felix said nothing.

"I thought so."

Sheba tried to stand, but immediately fell back down. A gloved hand shot out in front of her face. "Need help?"

After hesitating for a moment, she took Felix's hand, and he hoisted her up. "Th-thanks." She wobbled a bit, but managed to remain standing. Her cheek still ached, and would likely bruise, but she'd survive.

"What's your name?"

"It's Sheba."

Without warning, Felix placed his hand on her injured cheek for a moment. When he took it away, her cheek no longer hurt.

"How did you do that?" She fingered her cheek, but didn't even feel a twinge.

"I'm an Adept. Like you." He motioned for her to start walking with the rest of them. The two strange men and the woman were already about ten feet ahead of them, seeming to be arguing heatedly about something.

"... Adept?"

"We're all Adepts," the auburn-haired girl said. "Well, except for Kraden. I'm Jenna." She offered her hand, which Sheba awkwardly shook. They were still walking, after all.

The elderly man nodded. "Alas, I cannot use Psynergy. Although with you, Sheba, I believe we will have at least one Adept for each element. You have power over the wind, yes?"

"I do. I can also read minds." Their reactions varied—Kraden's eyes widened considerably, Jenna looked absolutely horrified, and Felix fiddled with the hem of his tunic, looking very uneasy. Sheba giggled. "Don't worry, I haven't read your minds. Nor will I ever. I learned the hard way that you're almost always better off not knowing."

They all nodded, looking very relieved.

"Are ... are all of you prisoners too? You don't seem like them ..." She didn't need to specify who she was talking about.

"Kraden and I are," Jenna said. "But Felix ..."

"I'm here of my own accord. Mostly to make sure that Saturos and Menardi don't hurt Jenna or Kraden. Or you, now. You don't need to worry about them—I swear I'll protect you."

Jenna rolled her eyes. "Typical Felix, promising to protect someone he's only known for five minutes."

Sheba smiled. Somehow, she knew that when the time came, Felix would honour his promise. It lessened her fear of Saturos and Menardi, if only a little bit. "Thank you, Felix."


	2. A Lucky Fall

Of course I wrote the oh-so-notorious fall from Venus Lighthouse. If I wanted to be original, I wouldn't be writing fan fiction. :P

* * *

Silence.

The battle was over. Both sides had fought with valour and had sustained many injuries, but only one could prevail. The victors watched as the great two-headed dragon gave a deafening cry before collapsing and reverting back to its original forms.

It was the silence that followed.

Felix and Sheba sat on Venus Lighthouse's elevator, shielded by its wall, waiting for any sort of indication of what was happening. Sheba clutched Felix's arm with a bruising force, but Felix didn't really mind. It helped him stay calm and composed when all he wanted to do was lean over the edge of the lighthouse and empty his stomach. But he had promised to protect her, and protecting someone left no room for being scared shitless. Showing Sheba his fear would only make her feel worse.

"Is it over?" she whispered, gradually releasing his arm.

"... I think so." Good—his voice hadn't cracked.

"Do ... do you know who won?"

"Isaac and the others, I think." He risked a look beyond the wall, but couldn't see anything of note. "I'll go investigate." He stood.

"I'm coming with you."

Felix looked over to her. Seconds ago, she had been quivering in fear; now, her jaw was set and her eyes determined. He had only known her a week, but he knew enough to know that any attempts to stop her would be useless.

"Okay," was all he said.

Slowly, carefully, they made their way to the main platform of the aerie, where the battle had taken place. As they got closer, they began to hear voices—Isaac, Garet and the others, by the sound of it. Felix motioned to Sheba to stop.

"... the long faces? We won, didn't we?" That was Garet.

"We beat them, yes ... but have we truly won?" That sounded like Ivan, their Wind Adept.

"No, we haven't won," Isaac said grimly. "We couldn't save the lighthouse, or Jenna or Sheba." Sheba frowned at the mention of her name.

"We did everything we could!" Garet nearly shouted. He had always been far too loud-mouthed for his own good. "Sure, we couldn't save Venus Lighthouse, but now that Saturos and Menardi are gone, we don't have to worry about any more beacons being lit."

"That's where you're wrong."

Sheba tugged on his cape, but Felix ignored her, stepping up onto the aerie. He didn't even know what he was doing—a few seconds ago, drawing attention to himself and Sheba was the last thing on his mind. Yet here he was.

The battle had certainly taken its toll on Isaac and his friends. Their clothing was ripped, bloodied, and even singed in places. Though from what Felix could see none of them were seriously injured, no matter the state of their clothing. That must have been the work of their Mercury Adept.

"What are _you _doing here?" Garet demanded.

Felix ignored him and turned to face Isaac. "If you really beat Saturos and Menardi... No one know their power better than I did. I can't fight you."

"Felix, you don't have to fight us," Isaac said. "Don't you get it? They're dead. It's over."

"If you truly think this is over, you are poorly mistaken."

Isaac shook his head. "But if you want to light the other beacons, you'll need-"

"The Elemental Stars? We have them." It was true; Saturos had given the Jupiter Star to Kraden for safekeeping before they had ascended Venus Lighthouse.

"You don't have the Mars Star." Isaac stared at him intently, and Felix met him stare for stare.

"Then I'll just have to take it from you."

Garet snorted. "I'd like to see you try."

"Felix, Saturos and Menardi are dead," Ivan said. "You don't have to light the beacons any more."

"You don't get it. This is just something I have to do."

"But why?" Isaac asked, taking a step forward. "Why, Felix? Just answer me that."

"You wouldn't believe me if I told you." Felix turned away. "We've talked for long enough. Come, Sheba."

Garet wasn't having any of that. "Wait! If you won't release Sheba, we'll-"

The lighthouse roared to life. The earth shook, and a great blinding light appeared over the aerie. Despite the relentless rocking of the lighthouse Felix managed to keep his ground, though Sheba stumbled dangerously close to the lighthouse's edge. He made a grab for her but stumbled himself when a particularly violent tremor shook the lighthouse's foundations.

Felix stopped breathing when Sheba fell over the edge.

In a moment he was at the lighthouse's edge, in a vain hope that he could still do something to save her. When he saw her just barely holding on, looking absolutely terrified, he let out the breath he'd been holding in.

"Take my hand!" he shouted over the roar of the lighthouse's power.

Sheba tried to reach, but failed. "I can't ... "

"You have to try! If you don't-" Another tremor jerked the lighthouse, and Sheba's hands slipped a little further. Felix's heart jumped to his throat. "Just try to hold on a little longer! I'll-" He stopped when Sheba shook her head and smiled.

"Goodbye, Felix. And ... thank you." She let go.

Watching her fall, Felix felt a sudden wave of calmness. He knew what he had to do. This was all his fault, so he had to be the one to make it right.

He dove after her.

Impossibly far from her already, Felix strained his eyes and saw ... blue? _It's the ocean! _On one hand, free-falling into water would probably be less lethal than falling on land, but on the other... He'd never stepped into water any deeper than his ankles ever since that accident nearly four years ago. He wasn't even sure if he remembered how to swim.

Felix hit the water and all rational thought fled. A few moments later, when he regained total consciousness, he saw Sheba drifting a few feet above him, being pushed and pulled like a rag doll by the currents. He swam as fast as he possibly could against the powerful currents, grabbing Sheba in his rush to reach the surface.

As soon as he emerged, Sheba in tow, he checked her pulse. It was very weak, but still there—she was alive, if barely. He had to focus on that. If he could just find some land, maybe he could save her.

Almost immediately he saw an island not too far away. He hoisted Sheba onto his back and began his frenetic swim to salvation, if it was even possible. Somehow, the island only seemed to be getting further and further away no matter how hard he swam.

This never would have happened if he hadn't been such a stupid jackass. He should have just left when Saturos and Menardi had told him to. But no, he just _had_ to get the last word in with Isaac. If he wasn't such a stubborn, bull-headed idiot, none of this would have happened. _I'm sorry, Sheba, _he thought. _I've let you and everyone else down. I should have only thought of __your safety, not of inflating my ego. I'm so sorry. _And it didn't help one bit that the damn island was moving away from him instead of staying still like normal islands should.

Wait. _The island_ is_ moving! _Come to think of it, Felix didn't even remember seeing any sort of island on the way to Venus Lighthouse. He supposed it was in the realm of possibility that the earthquakes had caused a chunk of land to break off from the main continent—when it came to the Elemental Lighthouses, stranger things had happened—but ...

Well, whether the moving island was a figment of his imagination or not, it was his only choice of destination at this point. And so, he swam with all his might.

He began to actually make progress. After a few minutes he realized that the waves were beginning to push him more _towards _the island, rather than pull away. Did this have anything to do with Sheba's... affluence of sorts? He had heard the stories of her origins, how she fell from the sky as a baby and miraculously survived from the impact of the fall, completely unscathed. It defied reason itself. Well, whatever the reason for this sudden stroke of luck, he thanked the elements that they were finally almost there.

And so, after a long, strenuous battle with the crashing waves, and after exhausting nearly all of his strength, he finally made it to the island. He managed to crawl only a few feet on the beach before collapsing. He promptly blacked out, content in knowing that Sheba was safe... for now, at least.


	3. Night Watch

I'm playing piano in a music festival at the end of the month (for which I am woefully unprepared), so the next chapter prooobably won't come for a month or so. Wish me luck! Or don't. Whichever you prefer.

* * *

Sheba felt herself being shaken awake. When she opened her eyes Jenna, who had been kneeling over her, released her shoulders with a dramatic sigh.

"Finally! I thought you'd never wake up."

Sheba slowly sat up in her blanket, rubbing her eyes tiredly. "What is it?"

"It's your turn to do night watch, silly." Jenna grinned at her.

Sheba groaned. "I forgot."

"I figured. But hey, you get the last shift, so you'll have the pleasure of waking us all up in the morning."

"Good," Sheba said. "Then I can get revenge on you for pouring water on me last week."

"Hey, you deserved it! You sleep like a log."

"You _look _like a log." Sheba stuck her tongue out.

"Yeah, well you _smell _like a log. That's why I soaked you. Because you stink."

They glared at each other, but after about five seconds Jenna burst out laughing and broke eye contact. Sheba joined her in laughing.

"Sorry, no, you don't smell like a log," Jenna said, still trying to keep her laughter under control. "You smell nice. Like flowers."

"And you smell like cauliflowers."

"Ha! Joke's on you—I like the smell of cauliflowers."

"I do too, actually." Sheba was glad she and Jenna had become such good friends. It was nice, having a real friend; she'd never really had any friends back home. Sure, people treated her nicely—very nicely—but it was impossible to truly be friends with someone who revered you.

By now Jenna was finished preparing her makeshift bed. Before finally settling down, she used her Psynergy to rekindle the fire. "Goodnight," she said.

" 'Night."

Sheba leaned up against a nearby tree, bringing her hands up to rub her arms. It sure was cold. They had set up their camp just outside of a forest, and luckily the trees blocked the wind. Despite the cold, though, she decided against retrieving her blanket; the cold might help to keep her awake. She could always make herself some tea, but then, everything she needed to make it was all the way over by Kraden. She was far too lazy to get up and go all that way.

It was no wonder, really, that Sheba was so tired. They'd be traveling non-stop for the past month or so, a month filled with seemingly endless days of walking and fighting monsters. It took more of a toll on Sheba than anyone else, but that was to be expected—Felix and the others had been doing this for nearly a year before Sheba joined them. It was getting easier, though. Slowly.

Sheba yawned. Maybe tea wouldn't be such a bad idea after all. She'd make some ... just as soon as she rested her eyes a bit. No harm in that. For only a few seconds, that was all ...

When Sheba opened her eyes again, the sky was light pink, the once crackling fire had been reduced to mere embers, and her blanket was draped over her body, tucked in all nicely. Kraden and Jenna were still asleep, she noticed, but Felix's blanket lay abandoned. Upon further examination of their encampment, she discovered Felix sitting at the edge of their encampment, watching the sun rise. He must have seen her sleeping and decided to cover for her. She felt a pang of guilt.

Sheba stood, gathering her blanket around her shoulders. Her back felt a little sore from leaning against the rough bark of the tree for so long. She walked on over to Felix, and plopped down beside him. She couldn't help but feel a little smug when he spun to her in alarm—she'd caught him off-guard, something that didn't happen very often. He recovered quickly.

"Did you have a good sleep?" he asked.

"... Sorry."

"Don't be. I couldn't sleep anyway."

She didn't quite know how to respond to that. Truth be told, she didn't know Felix very well. Ever since the events at Venus Lighthouse, she'd never even had a one-on-one conversation with him, even despite what he'd done for her. Sheba was grateful, of course, but she didn't really know how to express that gratitude to someone she barely knew.

"So ... Madra tomorrow?" she asked, trying to make conversation.

"Probably."

"It'll be nice to sleep in a real bed."

Felix laughed. "Yeah."

More silence.

"Um, there's tea if you want some." Felix gestured to a kettle near the now dead fire. "It's probably still warm."

"Thanks." Sheba got up and poured herself some tea—as he had said, it was still warm—then sat down beside Felix again. She took a sip and shuddered. "Oh, that's definitely going to keep me awake."

"Sorry."

"No, it's okay. Bitter tea is the least I deserve for falling asleep on the job."

Felix hesitated, regarding Sheba with his enigmatic brown eyes. "Listen, Sheba ... there's something I wanted to ask you."

"Oh?" This was unexpected.

"I was just wondering if you're all right."

"... What makes you think I'm not all right?"

"No, it's not like ..." Felix paused for a moment, evidently struggling with what to say. "Well, it's just, I know you're not really used to this sort of lifestyle. I just wanted to know if, in retrospect, leaving Lalivero was what you really wanted." He looked at her earnestly.

"If this is about me falling asleep-"

"It isn't. No, okay, maybe it is a little—it's obvious that you're tired from over-working yourself."

Sheba took a deep breath, followed by taking a long swig of her vile tea. She knew where this was going. "Felix, you know I have my own reasons for coming on this journey with you."

"Of course, but-"

"You need me for Jupiter Lighthouse, right?"

"Yes, but-"

"So it doesn't matter if I'm tired. The fate of the world is more important than the comfort of some fourteen-year-old girl."

"You misunderstand me."

"Oh no, I understand you perfectly well," Sheba said, standing. "You think I'm just some weak little girl."

Felix's eyes widened. "What? No, I-"

"Maybe I'm not quite used to living like this. Maybe I'm a little weaker than the rest of you. But I-" Jenna mumbled something in her sleep, and Sheba realized that she was nearly shouting. She dropped down to a whisper. "I'm trying my hardest. I'm getting better at this. So you don't have to worry about me—I can take care of myself." _There. I've said my piece._

He had the gall to smirk. "Okay, you can take care of yourself and you don't need anyone else," he said. "But what should I do the next time you fall off a lighthouse?"

Sheba deflated. Once again, her big mouth and big head had gone too far. "You saved my life and I repay you by yelling at you. I'm sorry, Felix."

"No, _I _should be the one who's sorry," Felix said. He wasn't smiling anymore. "Saying that about the lighthouse was a low blow. And I always hate it when people underestimate me or think I'm weak without even knowing me. And now I've done the same to you."

"Don't be stupid. You only showed concern for my well-being. And then I trampled on that concern, spat on it, then threw it back in your face."

"Come now, that's a little melodramatic." Sheba opened her mouth, but Felix shook his head, stopping her. "We're getting nowhere with this. Let's just agree to disagree, forgive and forget."

"Only on one condition." She fixed Felix with a stern gaze.

"... Which is?"

"Next time, don't make the tea so bitter." She couldn't help it—she grinned.

He grinned back. "If I must." He stuck out his hand and they shook on it.

They said nothing more. The silence wasn't tense or awkward; it was pleasant, comfortable. Content in one another's company, they watched the rest of the sunrise together.


End file.
